A New Grants Scheme to Help Small Local Businesses and Charities

A new Discretionary Grants Scheme is now available for businesses in the Dover district that have not been able to apply for any other grant during the Covid-19 pandemic.

This new additional grant scheme is aimed at small businesses and charities that were not eligible for the Small Business Grant Fund or Retail, Leisure and Hospitality Grant Fund.

Dover District Council maintains discretion concerning the awarding of this fund but will administer the scheme within the guidance issued by national Government.

Businesses that are likely to benefit from this scheme include:

Small businesses in shared offices or other flexible workspaces

Regular market traders with fixed building costs, such as rent, who do not have their own business rates assessment

Bed and Breakfasts which pay Council Tax instead of Business Rates

Charity property in receipt of charitable business rates relief which would otherwise have been eligible for Small Business Rates Relief or Rural Rate Relief.

Businesses that form part of the delivery and / or supply chain for the Tourism, Leisure, Retail and Hospitality sector where they can demonstrate that at least 50% of their turnover is from these sectors.

In addition, eligible businesses must fall into all of the following categories:

Businesses with ongoing fixed building-related costs

Businesses which can demonstrate that they have suffered a significant fall in income due to the Covid-19 crisis

Businesses with fewer than 50 employees

Businesses that were trading on 11 March 2020

Businesses which occupy property, or part of a property, with a rateable value or annual rent or annual mortgage payments below £51,000.

The value of awards will depend on the number of valid applications and it is therefore possible that the grants will have to be capped at a modest level, if the scheme is heavily subscribed.

Trevor Bartlett, Leader of the Council, said: “This new additional grant scheme is aimed at small businesses and charities that were not eligible for the Small Business Grant Fund or Retail, Leisure and Hospitality Grant Fund. We are really keen to hear from those businesses who are eligible to apply for this grant to help them get through this difficult time”.

The scheme will be opened to applications from 1 June until 15 June 11.59pm. Completion of assessment will be by 20 June with payments to successful applicants made the following week.

For further information, visit our website at www.dover.gov.uk/discretionarygrants

Coronavirus Weekly
Update (29 May)

As more people get out and
about, and as lockdown measures are adjusted, DDC continues to work with
communities and partners to provide a whole range of key services for the
district. For the latest information on local services and support, please
see the DDC website. For
all the latest government advice, please see www.gov.uk/coronavirus

Lockdown latest

Yesterday evening, the Prime
Minister gave an update on progress against the five tests to be met
before adjusting the lockdown, and as the tests are being met, confirmed the
following adjustments will be made:

From Monday 1 June

1) Nurseries and other early
years settings and reception, year one and year six in primary schools will
reopen in a safe way.

2) Outdoor retail and car
showrooms, where social distancing is generally easier, will reopen.

3) Up to six people will be
able to meet outside (in parks, gardens and other private outdoor space),
provided those from different households continue strictly to observe social
distancing rules by staying two metres apart.

Please note that those who have
been asked to shield themselves should continue to do so. Further social
distancing guidance will follow in the coming days - please visit the
Coronavirus FAQs page for updates at the GOV.UK website.

From Monday 15 June

1) Secondary schools will begin
to provide some face-to-face contact time for years 10 and 12.

2) The government intends to
reopen other non-essential retail - but only provided the five tests are
still being met and shops have been made 'Covid secure'.

Full details of the statement
from the Prime Minister can be found on the GOV.UK website.

Test and Trace

The NHS test and trace
service has now been launched. The service:

ensures that anyone who
develops symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19) can quickly be tested to
find out if they have the virus, and also includes targeted asymptomatic
testing of NHS and social care staff and care home residents

helps trace close recent
contacts of anyone who tests positive for coronavirus and, if necessary,
notifies them that they must self-isolate at home to help stop the
spread of the virus.

For more information, including
what happens if you test positive for coronavirus or have had close contact
with someone who has tested positive, please see the GOV.UK website

DDC plans £2.5m
support package for town centres

DDC’s Cabinet is to meet on 1 June to
consider a raft of budget measures in response
to the financial challenge of Covid-19, including committing £2.5m to help
town centres recover as the lockdown is eased. Dover District Council is
proposing a revised budget in response to Covid-19, which has had a major
financial impact on all local authorities.

Public toilets in
Dover District

As more people are getting out
and about in the district, Dover District Council has announced today that it
is reopening all its public toilets on 9 June.

We are providing signage both
inside and outside the toilets to remind people to protect themselves and
others by washing their hands thoroughly, and to stress the importance of
maintaining social distancing. We will also be making it clear to people how
to report any concerns about supplies or standards of cleanliness.

Since the toilets are
unattended, we are relying on those using the facilities to act responsibly.
We are confident that people will do so, allowing us to keep the facilities
open, but we will check regularly and respond swiftly if any issues arise.
Remember stay alert, control the virus, save lives.

Statutory Sick Pay
Rebate Scheme

The government’s Coronavirus
Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme is now live. If you're an employer, with
fewer than 250 employees, find out if you can use the Coronavirus Statutory
Sick Pay Rebate Scheme to claim back employees' coronavirus-related Statutory
Sick Pay.

Reopening High
Streets Safely Fund

Government has announced a new
£50 million fund for councils to support their local high streets get safely
back to business.The Reopening High Streets Safely Fund will help councils in
England introduce a range of safety measures in a move to get people back to
work and customers back to the shops. The allocation for Dover District
is £105,542.

Stay alert

With another weekend
approaching, we continue to urge people to follow all the latest government
advice, and stress that people need to behave responsibly at all times.
We continue to stress the importance of beach safety, and that people should
always observe water safety and act responsibly around water. We continue to
stress that people should observe social distancing when outside their homes.

Keep up to date

As well as Facebook and
Twitter, DDC is also on LinkedIn. During the coronavirus pandemic,
we're keeping all our social media channels updated with the latest news and
advice, so please keep following! Or see the DDC website at www.dover.gov.uk